Arden by G. D. Harper - #blogtour #bookspotlight

 

I'm thrilled to be shining the spotlight on this book today. Arden by G.D. Harper is the astonishing untold story of Shakespeare's first play. I very much wish I had had the time to have read and reviewed this for the blog tour but couldn't fit it into my blogging schedule at present. It is a book I would love to read though.

I have previously read the author's previous book, The Maids of Biddenden and you can read my review by clicking here.

The Blurb

Alice Arden, idealistic and wealthy beauty, burnt at the stake for killing her husband, the former mayor of Faversham in Kent. But was she really the one responsible for the most scandalous murder of the sixteenth century?

William Shakespeare, England’s greatest playwright, born thirteen years after Alice’s execution. Why does his first-ever play, written about this murder, not bear his name?

This is a story of two people – one reviled, one revered – whose fates become linked in a tale of corruption, collusion and conspiracy. Based on historical documents and recently published academic research, Arden unveils shocking new evidence about the murder of Thomas Arden and reveals, for the first time, a remarkable new theory about Shakespeare’s early years.

Book Details

ISBN: 978 1739677831

Publisher:  Ginger Cat

Formats:  e-book and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

Purchase Links

Bookshop.org

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Waterstones

About the Author

G.D. Harper has written four novels in the last eight years under the penname GD Harper. 

His last novel, The Maids of Biddenden, the imagined biography of real-life conjoined twins born in 12th-century Kent, was featured on BBC TV News and was the winner of the Next Generation Indie Book Awards in the historical fiction category, shortlisted for the 2022 Selfie Award at the London Book Fair, and shortlisted or longlisted for five other awards. 

It has over a thousand ratings on Amazon UK and Goodreads, with an average score of 4.3. Across the major Amazon markets, it reached number sixteen in overall paid-for e-book sales, number two in historical fiction and number one in medieval historical fiction. 

You can also find him at

Instagram

GDHarper.com

Twitter / X

(all media courtesy of Rachel's Random Resources)

(all opinions are my own)

(bookshop.org affiliated)

The Idle Stance of the Tippler Pigeon by Safinah Danish Elahi - #spotlight #blogtour

 

Today, I am excited to be shining the spotlight on The Idle Stance of the Tippler Pigeon by Safinah Danish Elahi. I love the cover and I can hardly wait to read it. In fact, I will be reviewing this book on the 5th July as part of the blog tour so watch this space. In the meantime, here is some information about this book.

The Blurb

Zohaib, Misha and Nadia believed they would be in each other's lives forever. As children they played, argued, teased and loved one another. Yet nothing could have prepared them for the tragic turn of events one fateful afternoon in Karachi, Pakistan, when the divisions and differences between them are revealed.

Years later and they are still trying to piece their lives back together, still trying to make sense of what happened. Zohaib is living in London, haunted by the ghosts of the past. Nadia has escaped the household where she first met Misha and Zohaib but finds fate delivering her back to their door…

The Idle Stance of the Tippler Pigeon is a beautifully rendered portrait of love, healing, and long-buried pain, digging deep into the nature of trauma and class division.

ISBN:  978 1911107705

Publisher:  Neem Tree Press

Formats: Paperback

No. of Pages:  250

About the Author:

Safinah Danish Elahi is a lawyer, poet, writer, and the founder of an independent publishing house based in Pakistan. Her poetry collection has been critically acclaimed and one of her novels has been commissioned for television. Safinah was selected for the Iowa Writer’s Workshop 2022 Fall Residency and is often on the judging panel for writing competitions across Pakistan.

(media courtesy of The Write Reads)

(all opinions are my own)

The Falconer's Apprentice by Malve von Hassell - #spotlight #blogtour

 

I love the sepia tones on the cover of this book. Today I am so pleased to be shining the spotlight on this historical fiction novel as part of the blog tour.

The Blurb

The Falconer's Apprentice is a story of adventure and intrigue set in the intense social and political unrest of the Holy Roman Empire in the thirteenth century.

“That bird should be destroyed!” 

Andreas stared at Ethelbert in shock. Blood from an angry-looking gash on the young lord’s cheek dripped onto his embroidered tunic. Andreas clutched the handles of the basket containing the young peregrine. Perhaps this was a dream—

Andreas, an apprentice falconer at Castle Kragenberg, cannot bear the thought of killing the young female falcon and smuggles her out of the castle. Soon he realizes that his own time there has come to an end, and he stows away, with the bird, in the cart of an itinerant trader, Richard of Brugge. 

So begins a series of adventures that lead him from an obscure castle in northern Germany to the farthest reaches of Frederick von Hohenstaufen’s Holy Roman Empire, following a path dictated by the wily trader’s mysterious mission. Andreas continues to improve his falconry skills, but he also learns to pay attention to what is happening around him as he travels through areas fraught with political unrest. 

Eventually, Richard confides in Andreas, and they conspire to free Enzio, the eldest of the emperor’s illegitimate sons, from imprisonment in Bologna. 

***

ISBN: 978 1737101185

Publisher:  Malve von Hassell

Formats:  e-book and paperback (currently available on Kindle Unlimited)

No. of Pages:  214 (paperback)

About the Author:

Malve von Hassell is a freelance writer, researcher, and translator. She holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from the New School for Social Research. Working as an independent scholar, she published The Struggle for Eden: Community Gardens in New York City (Bergin & Garvey 2002) and Homesteading in New York City 1978-1993: The Divided Heart of Loisaida (Bergin & Garvey 1996). She has also edited her grandfather Ulrich von Hassell's memoirs written in prison in 1944, Der Kreis schließt sich - Aufzeichnungen aus der Haft 1944 (Propylaen Verlag 1994). 

She has taught at Queens College, Baruch College, Pace University, and Suffolk County Community College, while continuing her work as a translator and writer. 

Malve has published two children’s picture books, Tooth Fairy (Amazon KDP 2012/2020), and Turtle Crossing (Amazon KDP 2023), and her translation and annotation of a German children’s classic by Tamara Ramsay, Rennefarre: Dott’s Wonderful Travels and Adventures (Two Harbors Press, 2012).

The Falconer’s Apprentice (2015/KDP 2024) was her first historical fiction novel for young adults. She has published Alina: A Song for the Telling (BHC Press, 2020), set in Jerusalem in the time of the crusades, and The Amber Crane (Odyssey Books, 2021), set in Germany in 1645 and 1945, as well as a biographical work about a woman coming of age in Nazi Germany, Tapestry of My Mother’s Life: Stories, Fragments, and Silences (Next Chapter Publishing, 2021), also available in German, Bildteppich Eines Lebens: Erzählungen Meiner Mutter, Fragmente Und Schweigen (Next Chapter Publishing, 2022), and is working on a historical fiction trilogy featuring Adela of Blois. 

(all media courtesy of The Coffee Pot Book Club)

(all opinions are my own)

Exsilium by Alison Morton - #blogtour #spotlight

 

I am so pleased to be shining the spotlight on Exsilium by author Alison Morton today. 

It is part of the Roma Nova series, and I think this might appeal to any fans of historical fiction. But first, the blurb...

The Blurb

Exile – Living death to a Roman

AD 395. In a Christian Roman Empire, the penalty for holding true to the traditional gods is execution.

Maelia Mitela, her dead husband condemned as a pagan traitor, leaving her on the brink of ruin, grieves for her son lost to the Christians and is fearful of committing to another man.

Lucius Apulius, ex-military tribune, faithful to the old gods and fixed on his memories of his wife Julia’s homeland of Noricum, will risk everything to protect his children’s future.

Galla Apulia, loyal to her father and only too aware of not being the desired son, is desperate to escape Rome after the humiliation of betrayal by her feckless husband.

For all of them, the only way to survive is exile.

***

ISBN: 979 1097310387

Publisher:  Pulcheria Press

Formats:  e-book and paperback

No. of Pages:  364

About the Author:

Alison Morton writes award-winning thrillers featuring tough but compassionate heroines.

Her ten-book Roma Nova series is set in an imaginary European country where a remnant of the Roman Empire has survived into the 21st century and is ruled by women who face conspiracy, revolution and heartache but use a sharp line in dialogue. The latest, EXSILIUM, plunges us back to the late 4th century, to the very foundation of Roma Nova.

She blends her fascination for Ancient Rome with six years’ military service and a life of reading crime, historical and thriller fiction. On the way, she collected a BA in modern languages and an MA in history.

Alison now lives in Poitou in France, the home of Mélisende, the heroine of her two contemporary thrillers, Double Identity and Double Pursuit.

(all media courtesy of The Coffee Pot Book Club)

Just a Fika by Beck Erixson - #BookPromo #BlogTour

 

I am pleased to be brining you a promo of Just a Fika by Beck Erixson today. This book looks like a lot of fun to read.

The Blurb

Family.

They're always meddling in your love life

Even after they're dead.

Brooklynite-and genealogist-Ingrid Ekstrom accepts a surprise request from her typically estranged family: to become the live-in caretaker of their shared historic house in the sleepy Jersey Shore town of Aegir Haven. A fun-loving cousin is quick to introduce Ingrid to the local handyman and bluegrass musician. As he fixes up the place, Ingrid digs into the house's past and learns about the family she barely knows.

And then Mormor-her long-dead grandmother-shows up, acting as though not being in the spirit realm is perfectly normal.

Ingrid's always yearned for stronger family connections, and it's nice having Mormor around. Mormor tries to set her up with a young real estate attorney who's closer to her more thunderous, god-like personal standards than the musician with keen senses Ingrid is falling for. As lore and legends mingle with real life, she's torn. Mormor's fantastical family sagas can't actually be true, right?

About the Author:

Beck Erixson writes about the beautifully awkward world of navigating the journey to true happiness through friendships, love, and family—be it blood, found, or chosen. Her stories enhance the importance of positive interconnection, even when we feel lonely. She lives on the Jersey Shore, and can often be found either writing by the river, or in it in some way. Her short stories have appeared in Many Nice Donkeys, and Full Mood Mag.

The Echo of Old Books by Barbara Davis - #spotlight

 It has been a little while since I did a spotlight post for a book that has caught my eye.

I could not let this one pass me by. It has a beautiful cover that makes me want to dive straight into it. It was released just last week and is currently available on Kindle Unlimited, audio and in paperback.

So, here are some details of the book. I am hoping to read this as soon as my schedule permits.

The Blurb

Rare-book dealer Ashlyn Greer’s affinity for books extends beyond the intoxicating scent of old paper, ink, and leather. She can feel the echoes of the books’ previous owners―an emotional fingerprint only she can read. When Ashlyn discovers a pair of beautifully bound volumes that appear to have never been published, her gift quickly becomes an obsession. Not only is each inscribed with a startling incrimination, but the authors, Hemi and Belle, tell conflicting sides of a tragic romance.

With no trace of how these mysterious books came into the world, Ashlyn is caught up in a decades-old literary mystery, beckoned by two hearts in ruins, whoever they were, wherever they are. Determined to learn the truth behind the doomed lovers’ tale, she reads on, following a trail of broken promises and seemingly unforgivable betrayals. The more Ashlyn learns about Hemi and Belle, the nearer she comes to bringing closure to their love story―and to the unfinished chapters of her own life.

It's a novel about the magical lure of books and summoning the courage to rewrite our stories by the Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Keeper of Happy Endings and The Last of the Moon Girls.

Barbara Davis has an extensive back catalogue, all of which look like books that I would enjoy. 

Have you read any of her books? I would love to hear about your favourite.

After the Burning: Dystopian Stories by N.S. Ford - #spotlight

 

Being released today, I am shining the spotlight on After the Burning by N.S. Ford. Enjoy!

The Blurb

“Things did not vanish. They were cleansed away.”

Five spine-chillingly plausible tales for our times. In a society without books, a labourer makes a shocking discovery. An artist starts an underground club for art made by humans instead of artificial intelligence. Parents who refuse to have their baby implanted with a communications chip must fight for their rights. A child goes on a school trip to the extinct natural world. Just before a general election, everyone becomes addicted to a new superfood.

A must-read collection of dystopian stories. They are works of fiction but, unless we act now, will soon be a reality.

About the Author:

N S Ford is a book fanatic, blogger and cat lover who lives in the UK.

She is the author of two cross-genre psychological thrillers, We Watch You and They Lie Here, plus this new collection of dystopian short stories, After the Burning.

You can find her blog at: https://nsfordwriter.com/

The Testimony of Alys Twist by Suzannah Dunn - #TuesdayTeaser

 Hello and welcome to this week's Tuesday Teaser. The place where we take a sneaky peek at a book that has caught my eye.

This week we are looking at The Testimony of Alys Twist by Suzannah Dunn.

Suzannah is the author of many historical fiction novels and I am loathe to admit that I have not read any of them. I'm not at all sure why I haven't, as all of her novels look like they are just the kind of thing that I enjoy reading. So, I intend to rectify this by reading The Testimony of Alys Twist, very soon.

Have you read this book? Or do you have another favourite that you think I would enjoy?

The Blurb

1553: deeply-divided England rejoices as the rightful heir, Mary Tudor, sweeps to power on a tide of populist goodwill. But the people should have been careful what they wished for: Mary's mission is to turn back time to an England of old. Within weeks there is widespread rebellion in favour of her heir, her half-sister, Princess Elizabeth, who is everything that Mary isn't. From now on, Elizabeth will have to use her considerable guile just to stay alive.

Orphan Alys Twist has come a long way - further than she ever dared hope - to work as a laundress at the royal wardrobe. There she meets Bel, daughter of the Queen's tailor, and seems to have arrived at her own happy ending.

But in a world where appearance is everything, a laundress is in a unique position to see the truth of people's lives, and Alys is pressed into service as a spy in the errant princess's household. Alys herself, though, is hardly whiter than white, and when the princess is arrested she must make a dangerous choice.

The Beginning

Parchment Halo

I remembered it once said, when I was small, that I would go far. Whoever had spoken over my head had been right, I thought, because just twenty or so years later here I was, arriving to work at the palace, and no servant gets further than this.

Fresh off the wherry-boat, foot in the washroom door, I was all smiles for the pair introducing themselves as my fellow laundresses: Mrs Fox - more ox-like than fox-like - and her sourpuss sidekick, Kay. I was only too aware I was no choice of theirs, but a recommendation taken up by whoever at Whitehall did the hiring and firing. And, worse, three's a crowd. So busy was I with the smiling that I didn't spare a second glance for a young woman, small and neat in periwinkle mockado, who passed us on her way to what I would later learn was the drying room.

Introductions over, I was directed to my lodgings - the Wiltons' house on Kings Street - and when I returned to the laundry a half-hour later, there was no sign of the laundresses. Instead a ruddy-faced royal-liveried man came bounding across the deserted washroom towards me: 'Mistress Twist?'

Well, there was no denying it.

He said he was Mr Hobbes, Yeoman of the Robes, and would like to borrow me to cast my gaze over the queen's wardrobe: he'd value an expert eye, he said, and I had to stop myself from looking over my shoulder, because any eye I had was for linen, not the silks and wools of gowns. Mistress Fox had been so kind, he said, as to lend me for the day. Neither she nor the sharp-faced sidekick were in evidence to confirm or deny it, and who was I to argue with a man in uniform? So, out of my depth before I'd even started, I did my best to look competent, snatching up my pouch of fuller's earth and a couple of my flasks of flower waters: wood sorrel and celandine, if only because those had the tightest stoppers. I took no soap - gowns can't be soaped - and followed him from the laundry back to the riverside steps, which was when I queried: 'Wardrobe?'

***

Well I am feeling intrigued and am keen to read on. How about you?